BYU puts lengthy home winning streak on line vs. Air Force

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

01/27/2007 - Provo, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The BYU Cougars put the nation's third-longest home winning streak on the line today as they battle the 16th-ranked Air Force Falcons in Mountain West Conference action from the Marriott Center.

Trailing only Gonzaga and Air Force, BYU has strung together 26 straight victories in the Marriott Center, with the most recent win in the building coming on January 16 against Wyoming in an 89-81 decision. Since then, BYU has split a pair of road tests, losing to Colorado State by 12 points and then taking out New Mexico in Albuquerque on Wednesday night, 70-49. With the triumph against UNM, the Cougars are now 14-6 on the year and 4-2 in conference, compared to a streaking Falcons squad that is already 19-2 and leads the MWC with six wins in seven tries.

Air Force, owner of a 27-game win streak at Clune Arena, topped TCU on Tuesday night in an easy 72-39 performance, marking the team's second straight win and the 15th in the last 16 outings.

With respect to the all-time series between these two schools on the hardwood, both teams won on their own floor a season ago, which didn't help Air Force gain any ground against the Cougars who now hold a commanding 43-12 edge.

In addition to holding TCU to a woeful 5-of-19 shooting from the field in the first half and 32.6 percent from the floor overall earlier this week, the Falcons themselves knocked down a sizzling 61.9 percent from the field and 7-of-14 behind the three-point line in cruising to the win. The academy put a total of 15 players on the floor in the blowout, with Dan Nwaelele posting a team-high 13 points, while Matt McCraw and Tim Anderson tallied 11 points apiece. With four players having started every game this season, the Falcons generally know what they are going to get from night to night, although Jacob Burtschi (14.3 ppg), 5.6 rpg) failed to score in double figures in the win over TCU. Then again, he really didn't have to seeing as how the outcome was never in doubt. Nwaelele, a 50.5 percent shooter from three-point range, leads the squad with his 15.0 ppg and even though the team has just two losses on the campaign, they are still seventh in the conference in scoring with 72.6 ppg. However, as has been the case in recent years, the defense for the Falcons is unmatched, limiting opponents to a scant 55.2 ppg to again place near the top of the category on a national scale.

New Mexico was no match for the Cougars the last time out, especially with Lobo star guard J.R. Giddens aggravating an injury that had him out of the lineup for a few games earlier this month. Jonathan Tavernari came off the bench to tally 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field for the visiting team, while Trent Plaisted and Jimmy Balderson chipped in with 11 and 10 points, respectively. BYU shot better than 50 percent from the field and made have of its 18 attempts beyond the arc, all while holding the Lobos to just 37.7 percent from the floor and 4-of-16 out on the perimeter. In their home games this season the Cougars have completely crushed the competition with a scoring average of 81.8 ppg, while limiting foes to a mere 62.8 ppg. Keena Young has tallied 16.6 ppg in those meetings, adding a team-high 7.6 rpg as well, while Plaisted contributes 11.5 ppg and 7.5 rpg. Overall, BYU is ranked first in the conference in scoring with 77.6 ppg and is tops in field goal defense, permitting opponents to convert 42.2 percent from the floor. Although the squad doesn't have one dominant man on the inside to clean the glass, Young, Plaisted and Lee Cummard (5.8 rpg) have done well enough to get the team to 38.5 rpg, tops in the conference entering the weekend.

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Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.